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Monday, January 19, 2015

There was only one thing to do when I found that leftover cashew flour in my pantry. Yep. More cashew French Macarons.

I have lots of all spice leftover from the Holidays. So I killed two birds with one macaron using up both to create this lovely sweet and spicy French macaron flavor.

Make that three birds. I added some Turkish honey to some unflavored buttercream I had hanging out in the freezer.

Spicy, sort of rustic, definitely winter. These are the perfect January flavor French Macarons.

Allspice Cashew French Macarons

with Honey Buttercream Filling

For the cashew allspice macaron shells:Use a kitchen scale for precise measurements.

Ingredients:

90 grams of egg whites - aged at least 2 days. Let them sit out on the counter uncovered.

25-50 grams of fine granulated sugar

200 grams of powdered sugar

2 tablespoons allspice powder

110 Grams of cashew meal (found at Trader Joe's)

Pinch of cream of tarter

Pinch of salt

Directions:

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or use a silpat.

Sift the powdered sugar and cashew meal together or pulse them together briefly in a food processor. Make sure there are no large pieces.

Remove and discard two tablespoons of the mixture and whisk in the 2 tablespoons of the allspice powder and set aside. Side Note:Instead of discarding, I collect these tablespoons of mixture in a separate ziplock bag and when I have enough I use it to make a half batch or full batch of shells. Pulse or whisk until combined thoroughly.

Whip the egg whites. When they start to get foamy, slowly add the sugar. Continue whipping until you can turn the bowl upside down and nothing slides out. Add the pinches of salt and cream of tartar.

Add the powdered sugar/cashew/allspice mixture to the egg white mixture and fold, using quick strokes at first then slow down. The batter should have a "flowing like lava" consistency. Make a peak of the batter and if it does not disappear after 5-7 seconds, keep folding. If it's running all over the place, you will probably have to start over.

Place a pastry bag fitted with a round shaped tip in a tall water and and fold the edges down around the glass.

Fill the pastry bag with the macaron batter, twist the open top to secure and pipe circles onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or on a Silpat.

Let the macarons dry for about a half hour or until they harden.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Place the macarons on the middle rack in the oven. I keep the oven door propped open with a dish towel or wooden spoon.

I place another empty baking sheet on top to prevent the shells from becoming toasted and discolored.

Bake for 18-20 minutes.

When checking them after 10 minutes or so, if the ones in the back of the sheet seem to be cooking faster that the ones in front, flip the tray around.

To test to see if they are done, peel the baking paper or silpat back, if the shell comes off easily, they are done.

If you do have a problem with the shells sticking to the surface when removed from the oven, lift up the baking paper and pour a bit of water underneath. this will steam them off the paper.

Transfer to a baking rack and let cool completely before matching up the shells into pairs according to size and then fill.

For the Honey buttercream:Ingredients:

1 stick butter at room temperature

3-4 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup honey

Directions:

Place the butter, 2 cups of the powdered sugar and the honey in a mixer and cream together.

Add the rest of the powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time until combined. If the mixture is too liquid, add more powdered sugar.

Fit a pastry bag with a large round tip and pipe some buttercream on a macaron shell. Top with a matching size shell.